BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 4. The mines laid by Armenia present significant barriers to the search and excavation of burial sites, the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages, and Missing Persons told Trend.
The commission, along with relevant agencies, including the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA), persists in search, excavation, and exhumation efforts in newly liberated territories to clarify the fate of missing Azerbaijani citizens due to Armenia's aggression.
Armenia's extensive mining and booby-trapping of territories, along with excessive contamination with unexploded ordnance during and after occupation, hinder restoration efforts and the return of former IDPs. Additionally, it poses significant challenges to search, excavation, and exhumation operations at grave sites linked to missing persons from the First Karabakh War period.
"In many cases, the clearance of areas for specialist teams to
access suspected burial sites identified by the State Commission as
belonging to missing persons is significantly delayed. This
prolonged process, spanning over thirty years, intensifies the
anguish and diminishes the hope of our citizens mourning their
missing loved ones. It exemplifies Armenia's disregard for
international humanitarian law.
The state commission strongly condemns Armenia's use of mines,
which not only results in civilian casualties but also obstructs
efforts to ascertain the fate of our missing citizens. This mine
terror has caused deaths and injuries among the civilian population
and serves as a barrier to clarifying the fate of our missing
citizens," the commission stated.
Following the liberation of its lands, Azerbaijan began operations in November 2020 to clean its lands of mines, booby traps, and other weaponry left behind by illegal Armenian forces.
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